Where does “zeroth” come from?
zeroth (English) comes from English zero, from Middle French zero, from Italian Zero, from New Latin zerum, from Medieval Latin zephirum, from Arabic صِفْر, from Sanskrit शून्य, from Proto-Indo-European ḱówH-.
zeroth (English): In the initial position in a sequence whose...
Definitions
- In the initial position in a sequence whose...
Ancestry of “zeroth”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | zero | The cardinal number occurring before one and that... |
| 2 | Middle French | zero | — |
| 3 | Italian | Zero | zero |
| 4 | New Latin | zerum | — |
| 5 | Medieval Latin | zephirum | zero |
| 6 | Arabic | صِفْر | zero, nothing, empty, void; nothing, cipher;... |
| 7 | Sanskrit | शून्य | zero; cipher, cypher; blank, deserted |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱówH- | — |